After William and I spent hours talking, and eating almost all the snickerdoodle cookies, he took me home. It was the perfect date. I’d never been so happy in my life. As soon as I walked inside the house, I hung up my angel ornament on the tree and rushed up to my room to catch a little bit of sleep. I just wished my ornament was going to be on my tree when I woke up.

I don’t know how long I slept, but the sound of laughter woke me up. Looking out the window, there were five children—three girls and two boys—outside, playing in the snow. It’d came down so much last night, I’d been worried about getting snowed in at William’s. In a way, I kind of hoped we would’ve been, because then I wouldn’t have had to leave him.

Jumping out of bed, I didn’t want to steal anymore of my grandfather’s pants, so I found a simple, gray dress and threw it on, not even bothering with a corset. It’d only be a hinderance for what I wanted to do. Once my boots were laced up, I threw on a wool overcoat, and raced down the stairs. My great-grandmother walked out of the parlor just as I was pinning back my hair.

“Where are you running off to? Please tell me you’re not going outside in such a state.” She must’ve been referring to my hair and dress.

Heart racing, I pointed to the field, where the children were sledding down one of our hills. “I know I’m thirty years old, but I’m really a kid at heart. I haven’t been sledding in ages.” Plus, I was so happy, I wanted to have some fun.

Grinning wide, my great-grandmother burst out laughing. “You sure are different, Adeline. It’s refreshing.”

If she only knew. I nodded toward the door. “Want to go sledding with me?”

She shook her head. “Oh, heavens no, my dear. If I slide down that hill, I won’t be able to get up. My bones aren’t as strong as they used to be. Just be careful out there.”

I winked. “Always.” Taking off outside, I ran straight for the kids. When they saw me coming, they grabbed their sleds and took off for the woods. I held up my hands. “No, wait! Don’t go!”

They stopped at the tree line, and tentatively turned around. I was out of breath when I reached them. Two of the little girls had red hair, while the other children had light brown hair. They looked to be around eight to ten years old.

“We—we’re sorry for sledding on your land, Ms. Hamilton,” one of the little boys said.

Kneeling, I met his innocent, blue stare. “It’s okay. What’s your name?”

“Benjamin.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Benjamin. You can call me Miss Adeline. Who are your other friends?”

One by one, they introduced themselves. Amelia, one of the girls with red hair stepped forward. “We were told not to leave our property,” she confessed. “Our parents said to stay on our land, but there aren’t any good hills over there. Not like here.” She looked down at the ground, twiddling her fingers nervously.

“You all are more than welcome to have fun here. I came out here to join you.” They all gasped and lifted their heads excitedly. “That is, if you’ll let me.” Squealing, they flung their arms around my waist and I hugged them back. I loved kids. It was one of the reasons I decided to teach. Laughing, I nodded toward the hill. “Let’s go have some fun!”

They ran a lot faster than me to the hill, and Benjamin waved me over to his sled. He held it in place while I sat on it. The kids all banded together to give me a giant push. The wind whipped by my face and I screamed and laughed as I went down the hill. I’d almost forgotten how fun it was. The kids cheered and giggled as I fell off the sled into the snow. It was hard to get up because I was laughing so hard. When I was able to breathe again, I grabbed the sled and marched back to the top.

Amelia jumped up and down. “Race me, Miss Adeline.”

My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest. “Let’s go.” This time, I took a running sprint and went down on my stomach, just like Amelia. I weighed more than her, so that gave me an advantage with speed. We both screamed, and I couldn’t stop laughing as we reached the bottom.

About that time, I heard the thumping of hooves and William’s voice shouting my name. “Adeline, are you all right?”

My stomach hurt from laughing so hard. I slid off the sled and onto my back.

William jumped off his horse and charged down the hill. He stood over me, his chest rising and falling with his rapid breaths. “You gave me quite a fright. I heard you scream and rode right over.”

Snickering, I held up my hands and he hauled me up. His skin was warm against mine. Memories of last night ran through my mind. “Sorry to startle you. I saw the kids out here sledding and I wanted to have some fun. It’s been years since I’ve done it.”

He blew out a heavy sigh and chuckled. “I can’t even remember the last time I did.”

“Hello, Mr. Blair!” the kids shouted. Amelia had already joined her friends at the top of the hill. They waved for us to join them.

“You know them?” I asked.

He waved at the children. “While I was in town buying the Christmas decor, I bought them some candy. Their families don’t have much.”

I linked my arm with his. It felt natural to be so close to him. “That was really sweet of you.

He shrugged. “Christmas is coming up. It’s the least I can do.” With a sly grin on his face, he nodded toward the kids. “Want to race me?”

“You’re on.” We made it to the top of the hill and the children rushed up to William to hug him.

“Hello, children. Miss Adeline thinks she can beat me down the hill. What do you think?”

Squealing, they jumped up and down. The boys sided with William, and the girls stood beside me. Benjamin handed William his sled, while Amelia gave me hers. With the sled in my hands, I was going to run like I did before.

William winked and got into position beside me. “Want to make a bet?”

Gaze narrowing, I stared him down. “What are the terms?”

He leaned in close, lowering his voice so the kids couldn’t hear. “If I win, you visit with me at my house tonight.”

That wasn’t really a bet because I was planning on doing that anyway. With a wide grin, I shook his hand. “You’re on. And if I win, you have to come help me cook dinner tonight. I want Helen and the others who work for my grandparents to have the night off. They deserve a break.”

His smile widened. “Deal.”

“All right, children. Count us down,” I said, getting into position.

Their laughs were so sweet. It made me realize how much I wanted some of my own. “One . . . two . . . three,” they all shouted together.

William and I took off at a sprint and I flew down the hill faster than before. William was close, but I beat him to the bottom. Jumping to my feet, I lifted my arms in triumph. “I won!”

William chuckled and fell over in the snow. “How is this possible?”

Grinning smugly, I stared down at him. “I’m just better. Looks like you’ll be working in the kitchen with me tonight.”

He stood and grabbed both sleds. “There’s no other place I’d rather be.”